FACTA and Shredding

The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA) of 2003 is a federal law administered by the Federal Trade Commission. FACTA was written to assist consumers in verifying that their financial information is correct and to help protect consumers from identity theft. The Disposal Rule, added in 2005, requires that persons and businesses must use appropriate measures in the disposal of confidential information derived from consumer reports.

Who is responsible for complying with FACTA?
Anyone who uses consumer reports. Some examples are:

• Lenders
• Insurers
• Employers
• Government Agencies
• Persons running consumer reports on perspective contractors or tenants

What is considered proper disposal?
The Disposal Rule defines proper disposal as practices that reasonably protect consumers from unauthorized access or use of the information found on their consumer report. Documents containing consumer information must be burned, pulverized, or shredded so that they are no longer readable. Electronic files containing consumer information must be erased or destroyed beyond reconstruction. In addition to a damaged reputation, there are financial penalties for willful non-compliance of FACTA.

How can US Document Security assist with FACTA compliance?
The Disposal Rule requires that if an outside vendor is used to destroy information, they should be certified by a recognized trade association. US Document Security is a member company of NAID (National Association of Information Destruction). Our shredding services provide companies with the assurance that their confidential information is securely destroyed and can not be recovered. A chain of custody is established from the moment we pick up confidential information to the time it is destroyed. We know where the information is at all times. We provide a Certificate of Destruction for all materials once they are destroyed, which helps to further provide proof of compliance.

If you wish to inquire about these shredding services, please fill in the form or call us at 800.880.3539.